UBS's Bob McCann to step down from chairman Americas role later this year

NEW YORK (Reuters) - UBS Group AG's <UBSG.S> Chairman for the Americas Bob McCann will step down later this year after a nearly 40-year-career that included stints leading U.S. brokerage operations for both UBS and Merrill Lynch, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters.

McCann was president of UBS's Wealth Management Americas from 2009 to 2016 and proved to be a key "architect" of its success, UBS Chief Executive Sergio Ermotti wrote in the memo sent to staff on Thursday.

"Bob transformed a business that was not yet reaching its potential ... (into) a centerpiece of our firm's global strategy," Ermotti wrote. The memo, which was verified by a UBS spokeswoman, was also signed by Tom Naratil, co-president of UBS's global wealth management and head of its Americas division.

McCann joined UBS in late 2009 after 26 years at Merrill Lynch. He got his start in Merrill's sales and trading program in 1982, and went on to lead its equity trading desk through the 1987 stock market crash. https://reut.rs/2POY6CJ

He eventually became head of the firm's U.S. wealth management division, a job he left shortly after Bank of America acquired Merrill Lynch during the 2008-2009 global financial crisis.

McCann has held the title of chairman for the Americas at UBS since 2016. The bank did not immediately name his replacement.

(Reporting By Elizabeth Dilts Marshall; Editing by Sonya Hepinstall)